Red Ribbon androids
During the entirety of the Dragon Ball series, a genius in cybernetics creates powerful androids for the Red Ribbon Army and later for pure revenge purposes. This genius is named Dr. Gero and these are his creations. Androids 1 through 7 All these units had design flaws or other problems which lead to them being scrapped. They're mentioned twice during the Cell Saga of Dragon Ball Z. Android 8 :Main article: Android 8 A larger-sized construct, Android 8 looks (and is modeled after) the more modern takes on Frankenstein's monster. Despite this, he's actually a very gentle soul. He was deemed a failure due to this fluke in his programming. When Ninja Murasaki learned he could not defeat Goku in Muscle Tower, he activated Android 8 to do his dirty-work for him. However, the android refused to fight Goku. Murasaki threatened to activate the self-destruct mechanism in Android 8's body, but Goku saved the android from being destroyed and the two became friends, taking down Muscle Tower (as well as the Red Ribbon Army near Jingle Village) together. Android 8 still resides there to this day. Note: Due to Dr. Gero not existing at the time of the manga, a new character, Dr. Flappe, was created to be his inventor. It's generally assumed that in the anime timeline, Dr. Flappe and Dr. Gero worked together back in the days of the Red Ribbon Army. Androids 9 through 15 These and the androids that follow were created with the sole intention of killing Goku. However, like 1 through 7, 9 through 15 all had problems which eventually lead to them being scrapped. In the manga timeline, 13, 14, and 15 were nearly complete, though weren't ready enough to be activated (Implying that they were still needed to be worked on). However, in the anime timeline, a secret supercomputer continued working where the doctor had left off, eventually releasing the trio out into the public to track down and kill Goku. Android 13 :Main article: Android 13 Presumably the most powerful of the three movie-only androids, Android 13 looks like your average semi-truck driver and hits about as hard as your average semi-truck. Though he was able to keep up with Goku in his Super Saiyan form, he was eventually defeated, but soon caught his breath and absorbed bits and pieces of his destroyed colleagues to become Super 13. Super 13 After absorbing bits and pieces of Androids 14 and 15, the truck driver-styled android transforms into a massive blue beast of unbridled power and strength. Nigh-invincible in this form, it takes the power of Super Saiyan Goku absorbing a Spirit Bomb to stop him. He is never seen again after his defeat. Android 14 :Main article: Android 14 Built alongside 13 and 15, Android 14 is a large, powerful, gray-colored android. Generally the silent type, he prefers to do his talking with his fists. He is killed by Future Trunks (after becoming a Super Saiyan) and subsequently his remains are absorbed by Android 13. He is never seen again. Android 15 :Main article: Android 15 Android 15 is best described as "a little man in a fancy outfit". His outfit and purple skin give him the look of a proud, Jamaican man, though he says little more than Android 14. A strange quirk of this android is the fact he carries -- and drinks from -- a small alcohol flask kept in his front pocket from time to time. Ultimately, he is destroyed by Super Saiyan Vegeta and absorbed by Android 13, then never heard from again. Android 16 :Main article: Android 16 Strong and silent, Android 16 stands tall as one of the doctor's largest creations. He shares a gentle nature akin to Android 8, seen staring off into space and admiring nature time and time again. He was programmed to kill Goku, but it's unknown if he would have as the chance to do so never came up in the storyline. This is why he's considered a failure in Dr. Gero's eyes. His ultimate fate was to play a pivotal role in the defeat of Cell. It was his demise that inspired teenage Gohan to release his rage and push to Super Saiyan 2 form. Android 17 :Main article: Android 17 The male of the twin androids 17 and 18, 17 looks like your average teenage boy wearing a casual outfit. Unlike all other androids before him, he's less a robot and more a cyborg, he and 18 runaways having been abducted and experimented on by Dr. Gero. Because of his rebellious nature, he was considered a failed android and sealed away until Dr. Gero, in a fit of desperation, released him and 18. Ironically, he ended up killing Dr. Gero. After he and 18 finished pummeling the Z Fighters into submission, he, 18, and 16 wandered off on a long and fun road trip to Goku's house. Later in the series, Android 17 became little more than fodder for Cell, becoming a part of Cell's very being and powering him up to his Semi-Perfect form. After Cell's defeat, he was revived and continued to wander the countryside, messing with people and having a fun time all by himself. In Dragon Ball GT, he once again played the role of a victim, being fused together with Hell Fighter 17 to become Super 17. After Super 17's defeat, he is once again revived by the Dragon Balls and presumably went back to aimlessly wandering. Android 18 :Main article: Android 18 Looks can be deceiving, as this beautiful, young lady can be very dangerous when riled. Much like her twin brother 17, she was too rebellious to control and considered a failed android. Also like 17, she was a normal, human girl until Dr. Gero experimented on her. In her first appearance, she humiliated Vegeta (who had just become a Super Saiyan) and helped 17 defeat the Z Fighters before she, 17, and 16 hijacked a Lucky Foods Company van and took a road trip to Goku's house. Later on, she became absorbed by Cell and helped him achieve his Perfect Form. A few days later, she was spat back out after Cell received an extremely powerful punch to the gut from an enraged Super Saiyan 2 Gohan. After Cell was defeated by Gohan, she wandered off for a while before returning to the Z Fighters and ultimately marrying Krillin, whom fell in love with her during the Cell Saga. The two also had a daughter named Marron. During Dragon Ball GT, she played a much more subdued role, becoming one of Baby's minions during the Baby Saga as well as fighting off Super 17 later on. Android 19 :Main article: Android 19 A very strange, round man of an android, Android 19 is one of two energy-absorbing models made by Dr. Gero. Despite being destroyed by Super Saiyan Vegeta, he was considered a successful android given that he followed his programming to the letter and had enough power to destroy Goku. Android 20 :Main article: Android 20 First shown as an android, 20 is actually a combination of a robotic body with the brain of Dr. Gero implanted in its head. Much like 19, he was an energy-absorbing model and also considered a success by the doctor. Long before he was an android, Dr. Gero was a simple engineer working for the Red Ribbon Army. It wasn't until Goku single-handedly took down the entirety of the Red Ribbon that Dr. Gero focused his attention to motives of pure revenge. As Future Trunks had predicted, two androids met the Z Fighters on the battlefield three years after Goku's return to Earth, but unlike Trunks' prediction, it was Gero himself and 19 who met them, rather than 17 and 18. Ultimately, Dr. Gero is destroyed by Android 17 and winds up in Hell. Dragon Ball GT introduced us to a new doctor, Dr. Myuu. After Dr. Myuu's defeat at the hands of Goku, Trunks, and Pan, Dr. Myuu and Dr. Gero teamed up to get revenge on them by creating Hell Fighter 17 (and eventually Super 17). After a complicated series of events, Myuu and Gero escape Hell only to be killed again by Super 17, much to his surprise. Cell :Main article: Cell The ultimate android, Cell is actually a combination of cells extracted from a number of sources (such as the Z Fighters and Frieza and his father). As such, he has the fighting knowledge, power, and even the MOVES of some of the most powerful fighters in the universe. Coming from a timeline in which 17 and 18 are already dead, Cell sought to absorb the duo in order to climb to his perfect form. Oddly enough, he had no intention of taking over the world, but instead sought to destroy it if Goku could not beat him. Ultimately, Cell was defeated by an enraged Gohan and sent to Hell. In Hell, he formed a union with Frieza and his Ginyu Force, generally causing havoc and being a pest to the ogre which maintain the peace. Goku (who died in the battle with Cell) was about to stop him, but Pikkon stepped in and promptly put Cell in his place. But only for the time being. Cell once again became a thorn in Goku's side in Dragon Ball GT. Goku, having to go to Hell, runs into Cell and Frieza. However, the two are ultimately defeated and detained by the ogres of Hell once again. Cell Jr. :Main article: Cell Jr. While not created by Dr. Gero directly, after reaching his perfect form, Cell can reproduce asexually through his tail. Taking the shape of child-like, blue Cells, each Cell Jr. is almost as powerful as Perfect Cell himself. However, they are far from durable as a single attack from Super Saiyan 2 Gohan is able to destroy each of seven spawned Cell Jrs.. Hell Fighter 17 :Main article: Hell Fighter 17 Created in Hell by Dr. Gero and Dr. Myuu, Hell Fighter 17 is, aside from being a Machine Mutant, an exact copy of Android 17 and was created locate, control, and eventually fuse with the original 17 in order to create Super 17. Super 17 :Main article: Super 17 The fusion of Android 17 and Hell Fighter 17 was a spectacular success, yielding the large and powerful Super 17. With the power of both 17 and Hell Fighter 17, he was able to fight and defeat all of the Z Fighters, including Goku, until Goku found his weakness and destroyed him for good. He is never heard from again. Trivia * Interestingly, the robot which Goku, Krillin and Bulma encounter in the pirates' cove in "The Trap is Sprung", the 50th episode of the Dragon Ball anime, has the number '2' painted on both of its legs. However, since this is apparently the Red Ribbon Army's first venture into the cave and they appear to have no knowledge of the robot, it seems highly unlikely that this would be the Android 2 that Dr. Gero created. Still, the pirate cove robot bares resemblance to a failed project, possibly Android 3, which hangs strung above what is unarguably the third android's laboratory pod in a scene during Future Trunks' telling of Dr. Gero's plot in Dragon Ball Z. * Interestingly, even though Android 13, 14, and 15 were not featured in the Manga, the "Androids A-B-C's" section mentions that Androids 13, 14, and 15 were very close to the Android concept. Category:Androids Category:Characters Category:Dragon Ball Category:Dragon Ball Z Category:Dragon Ball GT